In Morocco in the 1930s, hundreds of women and girls were trapped by the French authorities inside the walls of Bousbir — Casablanca’s red-light district and a tourist destination for Europeans. @katyphipps.bsky.social uncovers their stories.

Since it's now been formally announced, I can share that my article 'Negotiated Federalism' (WMQ, October 2024) is a co-winner of the 2025 Cromwell Article Prize from the American Society for Legal History. Bit surprised, very delighted, very grateful to everyone who helped me get the piece out.

Today is publication day for my book, Mixed-Blood Histories: Race, Law, and Dakota Indians in the Nineteenth-Century Midwest, through the University of Minnesota Press! www.upress.umn.edu/978151792034...

NEW: Judge temporarily blocks National Guard deployment in Memphis. A ruling in the Tennessee state court case over Gov. Bill Lee's move in conjunction with the Trump administration to deploy troops in Memphis. Story and ruling at the link.

One of my favorite books about the American Revolution is Kathleen Duval's *Independence Lost.* #KenBurns #HATM

Alex Norris knowingly speaking misleading incendiary nonsense. The UK spends 0.014% of its budget on refugees. This is aside from the net economic benefits of migration. Painting this in zero sum economic terms is absurd - the cruelty is the point and these people should be haunted forever by this.

Extraordinarily honored to receive the American Society for Legal History’s Craig Joyce Medal for service to the Society for my work as editor of @lawandhistrev.bsky.social. Also this replica premier league trophy with Law and History Review regalia! #ynwa #upthereds #legalhistory

I’m very honored to have received this prize for a paper on Choctaw constitutionalism that has defined much of my early career as a legal historian! And thanks for the photo @maggieblackhawk.bsky.social!

Fellowship Opportunity!

GOV. WES MOORE: “.. Donald Trump is not going to choose what our democracy looks like. .. The people of Maryland will choose what our democracy looks like.” @thehill.com #MDgov #redistrict thehill.com/homenews/sta...

The @ihr.bsky.social History of Liturgy Seminar is on tour! Our next session is in Oxford next Monday 17 Nov, 17.30. Cosima Gillhammer on writing about liturgy for public audiences & Molly Bray on statue dresses, reuse of mss fragments & nuns' kinship networks. @oxmedstud.bsky.social #medievalsky

A bill that would allow Ohio teenagers 14 and 15 years old to work till 9 p.m. throughout the year is heading to Gov. Mike DeWine’s desk, though federal law still stands in the way. via @ohiocapitaljournal.com

Took about 20 years. And I never thought a book about enslavers using deputization to give themselves policing power would be relevant to our times. But we are where we are. My book, White Power: Policing American Slavery, is now available for preorder. a.co/d/29c7EIP

I am heartbroken and horrified that the department where I received my PhD is under threat of closure. This is a dynamic and welcoming community that is at the forefront of American Studies in the UK. I encourage everyone to sign the below petition and rally behind our colleagues in Nottingham.

A month ago I looked at what I called Labour's midlife crisis- an obsession with chasing socially conservative Reform-curious voters and ignoring groups of disaffected voters with social attitudes much closer to Labour voters. But some people thought there was method in their madness. Was there? 1/n

Surprise! @jeanettepatrick.bsky.social and I have teamed up with @lynnprobbins.bsky.social and @patricklong.bsky.social at Primary Source Media to bring you Revolutions in Retrospect, a podcast that explores the histories of the revolutions that remade the Atlantic world.

Check out Revolutions in Retrospect! Our new podcast that explores the revolutions that remade the Atlantic world, from the civil wars of 17th century Britain, the Jacobite Uprisings, & American Independence, to Revolutionary Haiti, the French Revolution, the Enlightenment, & everything in between.

BREAKING: Utah state court strikes the remedial congressional map enacted by the legislature on gerrymandering grounds and orders the state to use a map proposed by the plaintiffs for the 2026 midterms. drive.google.com/file/d/19rjo...

As of today I have been a Wikipedia editor for 20 years 🧵of my favorite things I've seen and done in my two decades on the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit

The Illinois legislature had passed the “Illinois Bivens Act,” allowing people to sue ICE agents in state court. Just waiting for Pritzker’s signature. dailynorthwestern.com/2025/11/03/c...

Election night 2025 begins now! Check out our livestream all night long with @davidnir.com, @dwbeard.bsky.social, and @gelliottmorris.com

Democrats have flipped 2 seats in the Mississippi senate, and in so doing they've broken the GOP's supermajority in the chamber.

BREAKING: Colorado voters approved a ballot measure that would raise state income taxes on higher-earning households to fund free meals for all public school students. Follow AP for live updates.

Looks like the Dems will pick up 12 seats in the VA House of Delegates, which will go from 51-49 to 63-37 D-R. That's an honestly shocking result.

Virginia Gov, Lt Gov, AG Virginia HOD ~supermajority NJ Gov Mandamj in NYC Two Georgia PSC seats Prop 50 in CA PA Supreme Court— 3 seats It does not appear that blue and purple parts of the country are enthusiastic about the direction of the country under Trump at the moment; Dems are motivated.

CALL FOR NEW MEMBERS: The Society of Civil War Historians Graduate Student Connections Committee is looking for 3 new members. Graduate students studying the Civil War Era (broadly defined) are encouraged to apply. If you have any questions feel free to reach out to me (I'm the Chair of the GSCC)

Removing honours - some thoughts. Here we come to raw royal power. Two preliminary things to note. First, the Crown is the fount of honours - see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fount_o... Second, honours decisions cannot really be challenged by judicial review. It is not "justiciable". >

NOW PLAYING: Episode 20: The Rebellion With tensions mounting in British America over Parliament’s Coercive Acts, colonists begin losing faith in King George III, while British soldiers march out of Boston to seize arms and ammunition in Lexington and Concord. podcasts.rrchnm.org/show/worlds-...

Want to know more about Ronald Reagan and tariffs/trade restrictions in light of the Canada news? Oh boy, do I have a nuanced “yes, but also no, and let me explain 12 layers of political nuance” historian’s answer for you. I guarantee that you’ll wish you never asked!

There is a serious, principled case for a codified constitution, for some of the reasons George sets out. But botching together a constitution to stop Farage - a constitution that could not command widespread support and that was widely seen as rigged - would deepen our problems, not resolve them.🧵

Good piece on the Caerphilly result. open.substack.com/pub/willhayw...

My interim editorship is over at the end of the academic year and we are hiring a permanent editor of the WMQ! Please share widely!

Oh, and I think British readers can put your pre-orders in for the book already, too, if you want! www.waterstones.com/book/empire-...

Oh, this is so exciting! Thank you @lizcovart.bsky.social for the invitation. And while I'm here, pleased to announce that @uchicagopress.bsky.social is bringing out a paperback in Spring 2026!!!

Little wander in the city centre before the freshers arrive! @bodleian.ox.ac.uk @ox.ac.uk

Oregon Governor Tina Kotek in Portland: "I will not be approving utilization of the Oregon national Guard. The President does not have the authority to deploy federal troops on State soil."

Featuring Julie Flavell, Mary Beth Norton, @michaelhattem.bsky.social, and @frankcogliano.bsky.social Super voice work by @gracemallon.bsky.social, Amber Pelham, Evan McCormick, @aipsmith.bsky.social, @kreggallagher.bsky.social, and @johntrterry.bsky.social

Thrilled to see my research published in @anchistjournal.bsky.social! 'Enslaved women were not only violent in their interactions with Southern overseers through avenues of assault, homicide, and attempted murder, they were also armed.' You can read it here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

To clarify, New Hampshire is just ONE of a pair of states that still elects governors to two-year terms. Vermont is the other.

The White House is reportedly pressuring New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte to do away with a congressional map that's been remarkably stable since 1882 and pass a new gerrymander. If she says no, she could piss off Trump. If she says yes, she could alienate the state's voters.

Page proofs! That's my weekend sorted. Coming your way next spring.

I hope you can join us at The Power of State Constitutional Rights, a symposium on Nov 6-7 in Chicago, organized by @brennancenter.org & Northwestern Law Review. We'll be hearing from judges, scholars and practitioners about the future of state con law. RSVP below! brennan.swoogo.com/stateconstit...

“The greatest part of a writer's time is spent in reading, in order to write: a man will turn over half a library to make one book.” Samuel Johnson, born on this day in 1709

We’re advertising for a 30 month postdoc position in US Politics (very broadly construed). The role is mainly research, but allows the holder to gain experience teaching UK and US undergraduates. Happy to answer any and all questions. Application deadline 27/10. (Start date early 2026.)

OREM, Utah (AP) — Person suspected in fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk now in custody, FBI director says.

This week Historians At The Movies talks about Cheyenne history and the West. Join us on Netflix this Sunday September 14 at 8pm eastern for HOSTILES. Keep #HATM growing by sharing and we’ll see you soon!

Been nice working on my book here the last few days